MANCHESTER, NH – See if you can guess this storyline: Small town girl with dreams the size of a Broadway stage finally makes her way to the Big Apple – but she doesn’t forget where she cut her musical theater teeth, and returns to take a big bite out of the smaller but no less significant apple, center stage, a star on the rise.
If you guessed the true-life story of Manchester’s own Jenna Bienvenue, then you win because she is that star on the rise– a homegrown actress who came up through Palace Theatre’s youth programming and is now starring in the season finale of “42nd Street” as aspiring actress Peggy Sawyer.
“This has been a dream role for me really, for so long. I’ve done the show a few times – always part of the ensemble. The first time I ever did it was here, a few years back,” says Bienvenue, who was in high school at the time.
“When I was in college they did this show and I was in the ensemble again, and then I did the show at a production while I worked at Music Theatre Wichita in the summer of 2022 before graduating college, and I got to understudy Peggy, which felt like a dream at that time – but now, I’m here and I’m Peggy,” she says.
As far as she can tell her Broadway dreams are embedded in her DNA.
“When I was 4 years old my parents saw that I was dancing and singing all the time, and that I really wanted to do theater. All I wanted was to be the center of attention, so they signed me up for the Palace Youth Theatre program and I just kept doing more and more theater,” Bienvenue says. “By the time I got to the teen company that’s when I realized I wanted to do this professionally – and they even helped me prepare for college.”
After graduating in 2019 from Memorial High School, Bienvenue attended the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music where she earned a bachelor of fine arts in musical theater.
That was not without its challenges, as her first year during spring break she had to pack up her dorm room and move back home, due to the pandemic. And while that wasn’t how she imagined college life would be, she made the best of it – allowing herself to put her creativity to work doing things that were easy to avoid when the world was busier – like sitting down at the piano to write music, or draw or dance.
“It was summer so I would hop on Zoom with my friends and we’d pretend to do the show we never got to do,” Bienvenue says.
All of the steps in between have brought her full circle, from a wide-eyed city kid with Broadway in her blood to the star of the show on the Palace Theatre stage. She has been guided at every turn by the many caring professionals she worked with through the Palace.
“The fact that there is an organization like the Palace Theater has made all the difference. I grew up watching all the professional productions thinking maybe someday that could be me, and now, to think there might be a Palace kid watching me who believes he or she can one day be me – that’s really something,” Bienvenue says.
She has been having a blast performing with the professional players and reconnecting with her family and friends – including her longtime boyfriend Aidan Curran, her high school sweetheart with whom she has maintained a long-distance relationship for six years.
“We did all the long distance in college and even now – I’m in New York and he attends the University of New England where he plays hockey, so we’re both following our dreams – we understand each other that way, because we both know what we really want,” she says.
She moved to New York City in September of 2023 and is actually working on a “secret project” that’s still under wraps, but when she heard that The Palace was doing “42nd Street” from Carl Rajotte, she knew what she had to do.
“Carl has been such an important mentor to me – I can’t say enough about what he’s done for me and for so many of us over the years. He creates so many opportunities for us and I’m just so grateful and thankful – ever since I was 8 years old, he’s been there for me,” she says. “He has a way of recognizing talent and then nurturing that talent – and that’s what they’re here for.”
Those like Bienvenue, who have that spark, get all the fuel they need to keep the fire in their belly for Broadway burning.
“If you are that person who has the drive and talent to take it further, they are there to support you every step of the way. It’s amazing how their youth program is growing, even since I was involved, and the dance program they have now – if they’d had it back then I would have learned to tap dance sooner,” says Bienvenue, who picked up tap while in college – something which has come in handy for her “42nd Street” role.
She reflects on the experience of working on this show under the direction of her mentor, Rajotte. For professional productions that means lot of rehearsals crammed into a short time for a three-week run over many long days and nights. The scheduled is demanding and a successful show takes determination – getting it right for the director and actors means delivering the best show possible for the audience.
It’s been everything she ever dreamed of.
“When we ran the show for the first time Carl pulled me aside and he was like ‘you’re doing such great work and I’m really proud of you’ – but then he gave me a note for the show,” says Bienvenue with a smile and maybe just a little bit of emotion bubbling up.
“In the end, Carl was like ‘thank you for your hard work,’ and that meant everything – because I’ve always always been working hard, and so when you work hard you just want that person you look up to to acknowledge that,” she says. “And you take that with you to the next show and the next, and hopefully other directors will notice your hard work.”
It’s closing weekend for “42nd Street” and there are five shows left – tickets are still available. Click here to reserve a seat or call the Palace Theatre box office at 603.668.5588. Box office hours: Mon-Fri 9 a.m.-5 p.m.